ABOUT THE PROJECT
PROJECT OVERVIEW
The Village of Wilmette is working to improve the safety and mobility of residents and users of Lake Avenue between Green Bay Road and Sheridan Road. This distance of approximately 1.1 miles is a vital east/west roadway that borders the Ouilmette Historic District. It is also a key access route to important destinations, including the Wilmette Metra Station, Downtown Business District, Village Hall, Central Elementary School and Gillson Park.
SCHEDULE
The Phase I Engineering Study is slated to begin December 2023 and last through 2024.
PHASE I ENGINEERING PROCESS
The objective of the Phase I Engineering Study is to go through a process that starts with data collection, identifying the project’s improvement needs, evaluating a range of alternatives to address those needs, identifying the preferred alternative, and then preparing proposed improvement plans and the required Phase I engineering reports for the preferred alternative.
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WALK BIKE
WILMETTE
The Village of Wilmette has a long, dedicated history of development along Lake Avenue, and efforts in the last 25 years have turned focus toward non-motorized transportation. The Village has adopted several walking and biking policies in recent years to help make transportation safer for all types of road users, including efforts like the Complete Streets Policy in 2015, the Village of Wilmette Proposed Bike Route System in 1997, and the District 39 Walking Plan in 2018.
To help improve walking and biking in the Village of Wilmette and the surrounding area, the Village began developing a bike and active transportation plan in 2021, titled the Master Bike and Active Transportation Plan (MBATP). The primary goal was to not only get the community moving using sustainable forms of transportation, but to improve access to transit stations, business districts, schools, parks and recreational areas.
The MBATP lays out recommendations for future engineering studies, funding solutions, and infrastructure design from a street-level perspective, but also through a regional lens that considers the overall relationship and connectivity of Wilmette to the greater Chicagoland region.
The plan helps the Village in prioritizing funding resources, identifying roadways that are the best candidates for pedestrian and bicycle improvements and assists Wilmette in applying for county, state and federal grants.
The Lake Avenue project incorporates MBATP cornerstones to improve the quality of the bicycle infrastructure along Lake Avenue. The improvement of bike and pedestrian safety will lead to more use of the corridor in the future.